Go Forward, Try Again
by Hikari897
Summary: Aerith, the last Cetra, died. Cetra have the power to send someone back to life, but that person cannot be themselves. Aerith has chosen to send Zack back into life. However, the time he returns to is much after his death; Kadaj and the rest of the gang have just showed up, Cloud has geostigma, and can anyone, nonetheless Cloud, ever believe he's returned to life?


_This still needs to be proof read, but I wanted to get this up before I go to sleep tonight as I'm not sure when I next have free time. Good luck to all of you with the potential typos. _

* * *

He couldn't focus. The sky was gray, and the world was blurring over. All Zack could see was a shadowy shape with a blond splash at its top, and it was taking all of his strength to stay focused on it, and remember that it was Cloud, and the last things he said to the blond boy would be what he'd be remembered by.

"My honor, my dreams…" It was taking all of Zack's strength to lift the hilt of his buster sword up, shoving it into Cloud's grip, before letting himself go limp.

"They're yours now…" He's so tired, and he can't see Cloud anymore. Cloud is saying something, but while he struggled to make out what it was, Zack couldn't make it out. Letting his eyes fall close, Zack felt feeling leave him. The faint sound of a scream echoed in his ears, but that too faded. The feeling of knowing where his body was faded along with everything else, and Zack was left in the dark.

His eyes seemed to have opened, but there wasn't anything to be seen. Zack felt himself just floating there in a void of nothingness, with nothing around. He squinted and tried to move, but nothing changed. Staring at one point of the darkness he could have sworn he saw faint movements among the black, but he couldn't tell. Was this death, hanging immobile in nothingness for all eternity?

For what seemed like a few minutes, nothing changed. Oddly Zack felt at peace, until all of a sudden, something else was there in the black. Zack felt the calm fly away as he realized who it was. He hadn't seen her in that outfit before, a pink dress, but that was Aerith. She looked older too; what was she doing here? For a moment Aerith hung there like he did, but suddenly she started to walk, and away from him.

Zack tried to shout after her, but he still couldn't get himself to budge. Over what felt like another minute or two, Aerith –walking at what looked to be an extraordinarily fast pace- returned near him a few times, but always walked off into the nothingness again. She never spoke to him, although he could swear she had been looking at him more then once.

Then suddenly, Zack felt feeling rush back into his body. He fell almost, before standing upright on his feet, even though there was nothing to stand on in a world on nothing where there wasn't anything else-

"At last! It took you long enough!" The voice was feminine, cheery; Zack whipped around to see Aerith walking towards him again, a serene smile on her face. As he opened his mouth to try to say something, she cut him off.

"It's called the shock of death. Some people, like yours truly, get over it faster then others, like you for example. I could have sworn you'd never move!" It took Zack a moment to process everything, a look of pure confusion crossing his face. Simple things first, he told himself.

"So I really am dead then, and… you are too?" An edge of depression tinged the last few words; Aerith couldn't have died too!

"Not quite to the first question, yes to the second. I got killed a few years after you. Don't ask, it's a long story that you don't have time to hear. " Aerith spoke quickly, her knowing smile spreading as Zack continued to look utterly confused.

"I'm _not quite dead?_ But you are? Explain this to me, Aerith…" He begged, to which Aerith shushed him.

"Geeze, forgetful aren't you? We Cetra are pretty special, you know. We can find a way to the Promised Land, or, more literally, back to life. Sadly, we can't do it more then once, and we can't bring ourselves back. I think the world would like to you have back, my friend. So you're going back."

Zack couldn't believe what Aerith was saying, and let his head fall into his hands, fingers clenched in his hair. A terrifying mixture of grief and amazement flooded him. Aerith was saying she was dead, that she could bring people back to life, and she would give him a second chance? Cloud. He could go and see Cloud, see how he grew up, be by him, not have that poor kid live out both their lives…

"Aerith. Please. If this is a joke, I will never forgive you." Aerith shook her head, giving a musical laugh.

"Nope. Sorry I don't have more time to explain everything, but when you can come back here, we can talk again. You see, time goes by much faster here. It's probably only felt like a few minutes since you died, right? I'll take that nod as a yes. Well, Zack, it's been a few years, and all the time we spent talking makes it longer. I'd say it's been a bit over a year since I died now… Zack. Zack? Zack! Listen to me! Things will be confusing, but find Cloud and make him happy again, all right? Of course, I'm not sure if he's realized he's not you yet but... oh well."

"Wait, what? He's me? Aerith, please-"

"Zack, go back now. He's waiting, and I'll be waiting here for both of you when the time comes! Bye!" Zack had been half-expecting some show of amazing Cetra power; instead, Aerith gave him a shove, and the blackness broke.

Zack gave a small _oof _as he landed on the ground, blinking rapidly to adjust to the light. If what Aerith said was true, then it had been several years since he had seen anything but darkness. Zack forced himself to lay there –wherever _there _was- until his eyes adjusted somewhat, before heaving himself to sit up.

The world swooped, and Zack took another moment to adjust. He knew this place, of course he did. Of course the last time he had been here, the ground had been covered in blood and it had been pouring rain, but the plains outside Midgar where he had 'died' where hard to forget.

Zack cautiously got to his feet, and to his surprise his legs were steady underneath him. Finally taking a moment to look at himself, Zack blinked; he was dressed in civilians clothes, but they were baggy enough for easy movement, and were the dark navy and black he was used to in solider uniforms. It was much better then being in a SOLIDER uniform, which even if years had passed, would surely cause trouble.

Blinking again, realizing he had more important things to think about, Zack turned around to take a glance across the surroundings again. There was not a person to be found, but there was something sticking up out of the ground just a few feet away…

The black-haired ex-SOLIDER felt his heart skip a beat, and then pound faster. He took a small step towards it, and then another two. It was a sword, and one he knew al too well, having carried it since Angeal had given it to him, until he had given it to Cloud… There was rust all over it, the blade looking dull with wear and lack of attention. Cloud had left it here, where he had died? Had it been there all that time? Zack couldn't get himself to touch it, instead turning towards the city in the distance. He would get a different sword somewhere, before finding the spiky-haired boy, or man by then, Zack mused. Aerith hadn't told him what happened to Cloud; had Shinra caught him in the end? Or had he gone somewhere far away?

He would find out, Zack decided, shoving one foot in front of the other towards the town.

"_There's three white-haired bastards that are obviously your problem. We need your help Cloud. We can make the world a better place and help the kids with geostigma. _Blah blah blah. Shinra trash." Cloud muttered furiously under his breath, puddles splashing underfoot as he stalked down the alleyway. Rufus, who was showing up alive out of nowhere, _dared _ask him for assistance? He wanted nothing to do with them.

Cloud bit back a curse when he heard the chime of his phone ringing, leaving in his pocket. After several bothersome rings, Tifa's voice rang through, telling him to answer the phone for once, to come back to the house, that he better not be moping again, and all sorts of things he didn't want to hear. Cloud fumbled through his pocket in defeat, before locating the 'silence' button on the device.

"We can help, Cloud, you know th-" Tifa was cut off midsentence, Cloud jamming the infernal contraption back in the void of his pockets.

"DAMNIT." Giving a jump, a passing person stared at the blond man who had just sworn loudly for seemingly no reason, before scurrying away as the same man slammed a fist against the nearest wall, cracking the stone in the action. Cloud shot them an unnecessary glare, before continuing his angry muttering as he walked towards the house Tifa was summoning him to. "'Help you' you say. 'Things are all right' you say. 'Don't mope' you say. 'Your friends aren't dead never to return and there isn't no one left you love' you might as well damn say."

* * *

Chapter One/Prologue Ends. Next chapter to come when I next have time... ^-^"


End file.
